Dry cleaning system and process

ABSTRACT

An improved dry cleaning system and process capable of producing satisfactory fabric cleaning results through multiple fabric laundering cycles without the need to replace or dispose of the solvent and other components in the system. The present system and process employ a novel solvent usage and reclamation regimen.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 60/731,062, filed on Oct. 28, 2005.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a dry cleaning system and process thatemploys a novel solvent usage and reclamation regimen such that thesystem can operate through multiple laundering cycles without the needto replace or dispose of the solvent and other components in the system.

This improved system and process are particularly suitable for in-homedry cleaning applications where minimal contact between the user and thedry cleaning solvent is highly desirable.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is well known that the laundering process fall into two generalcategories: the conventional aqueous washing process and the drycleaning or non-aqueous washing process. A major difference between thetwo processes is the extent of handling required of the wash medium inthe waste stream. The waste stream from the aqueous laundering processcan be disposed into the municipal sewer system without furthertreatment. The waste stream from the dry cleaning process cannot bedisposed of in a similar manner because the waste stream from the drycleaning process contains solvents and other laundry wastes (such aslaundry soils, particulate matters, detergent ingredients, and water).As such, the dry cleaning waste disposal, especially solvent disposal,needs special handling to minimize environmental impact. Moreover, sincethe dry cleaning solvents are more expensive than water, it is desirableto recycle/reuse the dry cleaning solvents.

Commercial dry cleaning operations typically use distillation toseparate the dry cleaning solvents from other components in the wastestream. However, the required equipment and conditions to run adistillation operation method are quite burdensome, energy consuming,and not practical for use in a consumer's home. Additionally, forin-home dry cleaning applications, it is desirable to minimize userexposure to the solvent for reasons of safety as well as convenience.Accordingly, non-distillative solvent purification methods have beendeveloped. Representative systems using the non-distillation method aredisclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,855,173; U.S. 2002/0004952A1; U.S.2003/004751 1A1; U.S. 2003/0069159A1; and U.S. 2003/0070238A1.

While these systems and methods are generally safe and satisfactory forrecycling solvent within the system, minimizing consumer exposure, andminimizing environmental impact, there is still a need for improvement.For example, it is burdensome and time consuming to produce high puritydry cleaning solvents after every laundry cycle for re-use in thesubsequent cycle. In addition, purification after each cycle increasesthe frequency at which the components of the non-distillativepurification device and/or the batch of solvent need to be replaced,thereby increases consumer exposure to solvent and environmental impact.

Therefore, there is a need for an improved dry cleaning process andsystem that is safe, efficient, sustainable through multiple launderingcycles without user intervention while producing satisfactory cleaningresults to the fabric articles processed through each laundering cycle.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

During a laundering operation, it is often observed that the wash eluentfrom the wash cycle has floating suds, soils and an unappealingmurkiness, all of which signal to the consumers that the launderingoperation is successful in removing soils from the fabric articles. Thiswash eluent is discarded without hesitation. One would never considerreusing this murky, contaminated wash eluent to treat the next load oflaundry. Surprisingly, Applicants have found success in re-using this“soiled” wash eluent through multiple laundering operations and stillproduce satisfactory cleaning results in the laundered fabric articles.Applicants have found that high purity solvent is needed only for aspecific part of the laundering process to achieve effective cleaningresults in the laundered fabric articles.

The dry cleaning process of the present invention employs separatesolvent recycling or recirculating loops for the wash cycle and therinse cycle, respectively. Specifically, the dry cleaning process of thepresent invention employs a recirculating wash fluid which needs onlyoccasional reformulation to replenish the laundry additives or solventlost during the laundering operations, and a clean rinse fluid which issubjected to intensive purification treatment between launderingoperations. Since high purity solvent is required only for the rinsecycle, this new process greatly reduces the demand on the solventpurification components such that the system can operate through manycycles before user intervention is needed. It is found that this newprocess greatly extends the sustainability of the laundering system.

While the low purity wash solvent may contain laundry soils anddetergent ingredients, it does not appear to have much impact on theeffectiveness of the overall cleaning process. We have found that solong as we remove most of the used wash solvent from the fabric articlesand use high purity solvent in the rinse cycle, we achieve satisfactorycleaning results in the laundered fabric articles. It is believe that byseparating the used wash solvent from the fabric articles, thecarry-over of soils and/or contaminants from the wash cycle into therinse cycle is minimized; consequently, the re-deposition of soilsand/or contaminants onto the fabric articles is also minimized. Moreimportantly, the residues of soils and/or contaminants that are carriedover by the fabric articles can be easily removed by the high purityrinse solvent.

Additionally, we are surprised to find that the detergent ingredients inthe low purity solvent can be reused in subsequent laundering operationsand still provide detersive functions effectively. This providesadditional cost advantages. First, it is easier and cheaper to acquirelow purity wash solvent since it would not be necessary to purify thesolvent extensively. Typically, removal of particulate matter from thelow purity wash solvent is all that is required between launderingoperations. Second, it is also more cost efficient not having to add allthe detergent ingredients back into the cleaned solvent for thesubsequent laundering operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram demonstrating an embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 2A to 2D demonstrate the accumulation of soils through multiplelaundering cycles according to an embodiment of the present invention(with clean rinse) or a conventional dry cleaning process (withoutrinse);

FIG. 3 is a perspective view, partly in section, of one embodiment of amultifunctional filter in accordance with the present invention; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view, partly in section, of an alternativeembodiment of the multifunctional filter.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Definitions

The term “fabric article” as used herein means any article that iscustomarily cleaned in a conventional aqueous laundry process or in adry cleaning process. As such the term encompasses articles of clothing,linen, drapery, and clothing accessories. The term also encompassesother items made in whole or in part of fabric, such as carpets, totebags, furniture covers, tarpaulins, car interior, and the like.

The term “fabric treatment composition” or “fabric treating composition”or “wash composition” as used herein means a lipophilic fluid-containingcomposition that comes into direct contact with fabric articles to becleaned. It is understood that the composition may also provide benefitsother than cleaning, such as conditioning, sizing, and other fabric caretreatments. Thus, it may be used interchangeably with the term “fabriccare composition”. Optional cleaning adjuncts (such as additionaldetersive surfactants, bleaches, perfumes, and the like) and otherfabric care agents may be added to the composition. It is understoodthat the term “laundry additives/agents” or “fabric treatingagents/additives” encompasses the cleaning adjuncts and thefinishing/fabric care additives.

The term “dry cleaning” or “non-aqueous cleaning” as used herein means anon-aqueous fluid is used as the dry cleaning solvent to clean a fabricarticle. However, water can be added to the “dry cleaning” method as anadjunct cleaning agent. The amount of water can comprise up to about 25%by weight of the dry cleaning solvent or the fabric treating compositionin a “dry cleaning” process. The non-aqueous fluid is referred to as the“lipophilic fluid” or “dry cleaning solvent”.

The terms “soil” or “laundry soil” as used herein means any undesirableextraneous substance on a fabric article that is the target for removalby a laundering process. The term “water-based” or “hydrophilic” soils,as used herein means soils comprises water at the time it first came incontact with the fabric article, or the soil retains a certain amount ofwater on the fabric article. Examples of water-based soils include, butare not limited to, beverages, many food soils, water soluble dyes,bodily fluids such as sweat, urine or blood, outdoor soils such as grassstains and mud. On the other hand, the term “lipophilic” soils, as usedherein means the soil has high solubility in or affinity for thelipophilic fluid. Examples of lipophilic soils include, but are notlimited to body soils, such as mono-, di-, and tri-glycerides, saturatedand unsaturated fatty acids, non-polar hydrocarbons, waxes and waxesters, and lipids. Soils or laundry soils also encompass textiletreating agents or laundry additives, such as dyes or surfactants, whichare incidentally removed from the fabric articles during the launderingprocess.

The term “insoluble” as used herein means that a material willphysically separate (i.e. settle-out, flocculate, float) from the liquidmedium (a dry cleaning solvent or water) within 24 hours after beingadded to the liquid medium, whereas the term “soluble” means that amaterial does not physically separate from the liquid medium within 24hours after addition.

The term “contaminant” as used herein means any undesirable extraneoussubstance that is the target for removal by a solvent purificationprocess. For example, laundry additives and soils in the dry cleaningsolvent, the rinse eluent or the wash eluent are consideredcontaminants.

The Dry Cleaning Process

The dry cleaning process of the present invention is carried out in thelaundering apparatus of the present invention following the generallaundry process, which comprises a wash cycle comprising one or morewash steps and a rinse cycle comprising one or more rinse steps.Specifically, the dry cleaning process of the present invention employsseparate solvent recycling or recirculating loops for the wash solventand the rinse solvent. Each solvent loops comprises one or more of thefollowing operations: recirculating the solvents during the treatmentcycles, purifying of the solvent, reformulating of the solvent, andre-using the solvent in subsequent dry cleaning operations.Specifically, the fluid used in the wash loop can be reused repeatedly,with occasional reformulating. On the hand, the fluid used in the rinseloop is subjected to intensive purification treatment between launderingoperations.

The laundering treatment of the fabric articles is carried out in atreatment drum of the laundering apparatus of the present invention. Thedry cleaning solvent used in the present process comprises primarilylipophilic fluids in the amount of at least about 50%, preferably atleast about 80%, and more preferably at least about 90% by weight of thedry cleaning solvent. During the wash cycle, the fabric articles arecontacted by a wash composition. The wash composition comprises alipophilic fluid and at least one laundry additive. Soils are removedfrom the fabric articles, and the wash composition is thereby convertedinto a wash eluent. At the end of the wash cycle, the wash eluent iscollected and reused as the wash composition in subsequent wash cyclesor optionally, converted to the wash composition by replenishing theamounts of the laundry additive or lipophilic fluid lost during the washcycle. One or more particulate filters may be employed in the wash cycleto remove lint, buttons, or other particulate matters from the washcomposition and the wash eluent. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, itis found unnecessary to process the wash eluent to high purity or toformulate the wash composition from fresh or high purity solvent aftercompleting a wash cycle. Surprisingly, the double-looped dry cleaningprocess of the present invention is capable of delivering satisfactorycleaning results using the wash eluent as is, notwithstanding thepresence of laundry soils in the wash eluent. It may be beneficial tomaintain the concentration of the laundry additive in the washcomposition at or above a pre-determined level; this can be accomplishedby reformulating the fluid in the wash loop with the laundry additiveand/or the lipophilic fluid. It is also beneficial to maintain thelipophilic fluid above a pre-determined threshold level (e.g. sufficientto provide an immersive or non-immersive treatment of the fabricarticles), thus, the lipophilic fluid is replenished when needed.

During the rinse cycle, the fabric articles are contacted with a rinsefluid. The rinse fluid comprises a high purity dry cleaning solvent.Typically, residues of laundry additives and/or soils from the fabricarticles are incorporated into the rinse fluid during the rinse cycle.The rinse fluid is thereby converted to a rinse eluent. The rinse eluentis collected and subjected to intensive solvent purification treatment,thereby converting the rinse eluent back to the high purity rinse fluid,which is re-used in subsequent rinse cycles.

In a typical dry cleaning process of the present invention, the washeluent is removed from the fabric articles such that the fabric articlesare substantially free of the wash eluent before entering the rinsecycle. The term “substantially free” as used herein, means the fluidabsorbed by the fabric articles is less than about 0.8, preferably lessthan 0.6, and more preferably less than 0.4, of the absorption capacityof the fabric articles. Test protocol for measuring absorption capacityof a fabric article is described in detail in U.S. Pat. No. 6,898,951.The removal can be carries out in many known methods, such as spinning,twisting, wringing, squeezing, or like mechanical methods. A removalstep may also be included in the process of the present invention toremove the rinse fluid from the fabric articles such that the fabricarticles are substantially free of the rinse fluid, prior to enteringthe drying cycle. However, the removal of rinse fluid is optional.

The process of the present invention may also include a drying step,during which heat or reduced pressure may be employed to remove (e.g.,via evaporate) the dry cleaning solvent. The dry cleaning solvent vaporis preferably captured and re-used in the dry cleaning process, eitheras the replenishing fluid for the wash composition or as the high puritysolvent for the rinse fluid.

The Dry Cleaning System or The Laundry Apparatus

The present invention also includes a dry cleaning system or the laundryapparatus suitable for use in the process described above. The system(see FIG. 1) comprises a fabric article treating drum 1, a washcomposition tank 10, a rinse fluid tank 20, and conduits to connectthem.

The apparatus of the present invention may optionally include one ormore sensors. In one embodiment, a sensor is used for monitoring thelaundry additive concentration and/or soil concentration in the washeluent. When laundry additive concentration falls below somepre-determined value, the sensor would signal, directly or indirectlyvia the cleaning apparatus or other external control/monitoring device,that laundry additive needs to be replenished. An intensive solventpurification device may also be included as an integral part of thesystem/apparatus or as a stand-alone device, in fluid communication withthe dry cleaning system.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an embodiment of the dry cleaning systemaccording to the present invention. The wash eluent (i.e., the used washcomposition) is separated from the fabric articles by mechanical means,such as spinning. The wash eluent is then is returned to the washcomposition tank 10 to be used as the wash composition in a subsequentwash cycle. The wash sensor 13 samples the wash composition in the washloop conduit or in the wash composition tank 10 for the concentrationsof various laundry additives. Due to the loss of the laundry additivesin the laundering operation, it may be necessary to occasionallyreplenish the laundry additives such that the concentration of thelaundry additives in the wash composition is maintained at apre-determined level. In one embodiment, the laundry additives aresupplied from one or more laundry additive sources 14. The laundryadditive source 14 may contain individual additive or premixedcomposition containing the additives in the desired ratios. Optionally,a fluid level sensor 15 is employed to monitor the fluid level in thewash composition tank 10. When fluid level drops below a pre-determinedlevel, the dry cleaning solvent is supplied from a solvent source (notshown) to replenish the dry cleaning solvent. The particulate filter 12may be equipped with a pressure sensor 17. When the pressuredifferential across filter 12 exceeds a threshold level, filter 12 isreplaced with a fresh one.

During the wash cycle, valves 102, 103, 104 and 106 are positioned toallow fluid communication among tank 10 and drum 1 such that the washcomposition circulates in the wash loop and optionally an in-line washfilter 12 may be included in the wash loop. The wash filter 12 may be aparticulate filter for removing lint, buttons and particulate soilshaving a particle size of at least about 50 microns, or a carbon filterfor removing contaminants, especially textile treating agents such asdyes. In one embodiment, the wash loop runs through wash filter 12 for aset time, then the wash loop is switched to by-pass the wash filter.

On the other hand, during the rinse cycle, clean rinse fluid is releasedfrom tank 20 into drum 1. The rinse fluid contacts fabric articles inthe drum to extract soils and laundry additives from the fabricarticles. Optionally, the rinse fluid may circulate through an in-lineparticulate filter during the rinse cycle. Optionally, laundry additivesource 16 may be included in the system to add the laundry additiveseffective in the rinse cycle into the drum directly or via the conduitwithin the rinse loop. Then, at the end of the rinse cycle, the rinseeluent (i.e., the spent or dirty rinse fluid) is released into tank 21.The rinse eluent is purified through filter 22 and the purified rinsefluid is stored in tank 20. During the drying cycle, the solvent vaporis collected and condensed in condenser 18, and the condensed solventvapor is returned to tank 10.

After the spinning operation, the washed fabric articles enter the rinsecycle with a set amount of residual laundry additives and soils residingon the washed fabric articles. The rinse cycle employs a high purityrinse fluid supplied from the rinse fluid tank 20. The rinse fluidextracts the residual laundry additives and soils from the fabricarticles such that there are only trace amount of laundry additives andsoils remaining on the rinsed fabric articles. The term “trace amount”means that the laundry additives and soils remaining on the launderedfabric articles are below the sensory detection limits of an ordinaryconsumer. The most commonly used senses by a consumer for the launderedfabric articles are sight and smell. The fabric articles enter thedrying cycle. The solvent vapor from the drying process is collected,condensed in condenser 18 and returned to the wash composition tank 10,thus the overall laundering process experiences minimal solvent loss.The rinse eluent is separated from the fabric articles by mechanicalmeans such as spinning. The rinse eluent is purified in an intensivesolvent purification treatment, for example by contacting it with arinse filter 22 to remove the residual laundry additives and the soils.The treated wash eluent becomes a high purity solvent, which is returnedto the rinse fluid tank 20 to be used as the rinse fluid in a subsequentrinse cycle. In a typical embodiment, the rinse filter 22 is equippedwith a pressure sensor 24 to monitor the pressure differential acrossfilter 22. If the pressure differential exceeds a threshold level,filter 22 is replaced with a fresh one. Optionally, a rinse sensor 23 isemployed to sample rinse fluid taken from the rinse fluid tank 20 forpurity or levels of contaminants such as soils or laundry additives. Ifpurity falls below a threshold level, it indicates rinse filter and/orrinse fluid in tank 20 need to be serviced or replaced.

In one embodiment, the wash filter 12 and the rinse filter 22 may bearranged in a side-by-side configuration or a concentric configuration,each filter having its own inlet outlet, and conduits such that thefluid in the wash loop does not commingle with fluid in the rinse loop.This compact arrangement of filters offers a space saving advantage tothe overall dry cleaning system.

Because only residual amounts of laundry additives and soils are carriedover from the wash cycle into the rinse cycle, the amounts ofcontaminants to be removed from the rinse eluent during the intensivepurification process is quite small. Consequently, the filter used inthe intensive purification process can be quite durable. That is, thefilter can be used through multiple laundering operations before itreaches its capacity and needs to be replaced. In one embodiment, apressure sensor is used to measure the differential pressure between theinlet and the outlet of the filter. When the differential pressureexceeds a threshold value, the filter has reached its capacity andshould be replaced. Typically, filter replacement is desired when thepressure reading increased by about 10 times or greater, or about 20times or greater, or about 30 times or greater, compared to the readingof the original filter. In another embodiment, the eluent from thefilter is monitored by a sensor, filter replacement is indicated whensensor reading of contaminants exceeds a threshold value. Typicallyfilter replacement is desired when sensor reading indicates thecontaminant level has increased by at least about 10 times, or at leastabout 50 times, or at least about 100 times, compared to the reading ofthe original filter. Sensors suitable for this purpose include, but arenot limited to, turbidity sensor, color sensor, conductivity sensor.

The effectiveness of the present system employing a “soiled” wash fluidand a clean rinse fluid is best described via mass balance. All massesused below are exemplary and should not be interpreted as the actualcapacity of the system or the apparatus. A typical laundry loadcomprises about 3 kilograms of fabric articles, which contain about 2.5grams of soils. In the wash cycle, this load of fabric articles iscontacted with a wash composition containing about 100 grams of laundryadditives in about 30 liters of a dry cleaning solvent. The washingoperation results in a distribution of the soils and laundry additivesbetween the load of fabric articles and the solvent. After spinning andseparating the fabric articles from the wash eluent, the wet fabricarticles may retain about 1 liter of residual solvent, which containsabout 1/30 (or about 0.08 gram) of the residual soils and about 1/30 (orabout 3.3 grams) of the laundry additives. Thus, the residual solvent,soil and laundry additives are carried into the rinse cycle by thefabric articles. In the rinse cycle, this load of fabric articles iscontacted with a rinse fluid composed of about 10 liters of high puritydry cleaning solvent. The residual soils and residual laundry additivesare extracted from the fabric articles and distributed between thefabric articles and the rinse fluid. After spinning and separating thefabric articles from the rinse eluent, the wet fabric articles maycontain about 1 liter of residual solvent, which contains about 1/11 ofthe residual laundry additives and residual soils (about 0.3 gram andabout 0.07 gram, respectively). Then, ten liters of rinse eluentcontaining about 10/11 or the balance of the residual laundry additivesand the residual soils (about 3 grams and about 0.07 gram, respectively)is purified into 10 liters of high purity solvent containing nearly nocontaminants. That is, in the intensive purification process, about 3grams of laundry additives and about 0.07 gram of soils are trapped bythe filter. The resulting high purity solvent is used as the rinse fluidin the next rinse cycle. The fabric articles are dried. The solventvapor from the drying process is collected, condensed and returned tothe wash composition tank. Thus, there is essentially no net loss ofsolvent at the end of the laundering cycle. The amount of laundryadditives lost during the laundering cycle (about 3.3 grams) may bereplenished so that the wash composition maintains a pre-determinedamount of laundry additives in each wash cycle. Alternatively, thelaundry additives may be replenished when the concentration in the washcomposition drops below a threshold value. We found that even as thesoils accumulates in the wash fluid from successive launderingoperations, the laundered fabric articles consistently contain onlytrace amounts of laundry additives and soils.

Based on the capacity and soil level of the above example, the “soiled”wash composition may be re-used for at least about 50 to about 75laundering cycles, or at least about 100 to about 250 laundering cyclesbefore the soil concentration in the wash composition exceeds thethreshold level. Therefore, it is believed that the dry cleaning systemof the present invention may need a thorough wash composition clean upor replacement only about once to about four times a year, depending onthe amount of wash solvent or system capacity, the soil level of thelaundry being treated and the loads of laundry being treated per week.Thus, the present invention provides a sustainable dry cleaning systemthat can be operated through multiple laundering cycles without userinterference. The dry cleaning system of the present invention requiresonly occasional service and replacement of the solvent and/or filter.The present invention provides tremendous advantages in minimizing thehandling and exposure to dry cleaning solvents.

In comparison, the conventional process employed by dry cleaningservices typically comprises only the “soiled” wash cycle without theclean rinse cycle. As such, laundered fabric articles contain increasingamount of soils due to exposure to the cumulative amounts of soils inthe wash composition. Thus, the conventional dry cleaning processsuffers not only from less effective soil removal but also higher soilsre-deposition, both of which contribute to less than satisfactorycleaning results. In addition, the conventional dry cleaning systemquickly exceeds the soils threshold level and requires frequent systemclean up and solvent replacement The cumulative effect of theconventional dry cleaning process is dramatically different. Assumingthe same load of fabric articles is treated with the same washcomposition according to a conventional dry cleaning process (i.e.,without the clean rinse step), the treated fabric articles at the end ofthe first laundering cycle would carry a higher level of residual soilsand laundry additives. After 10 cycles, the cumulative effects on thetreated fabric articles and on the soiled wash composition aredramatically different between the conventional dry cleaning process andthe present invention. The Table below demonstrates the cumulativeeffects, after multiple laundering cycles, in a system according to thepresent invention (with clean rinse) or a conventional dry cleaningprocess (without rinse). More dramatic differences in soil accumulationafter multiple laundering cycles are demonstrated in FIG. 2. Clean RinseNo Rinse Cycle 1 Cycle 10 Cycle 1 Cycle 10 Soils in wash 83 728 83 833composition, ppm Soils on garments, 0.002 0.022 0.028 0.28 mg/g

In one embodiment of the present invention, the volume ratio of washcomposition to rinse fluid is at least 1:1, preferably 5:1 and morepreferably 3:1. In one embodiment, the weight ratio of fabric articlesto the wash composition is from about 1:1 to about 1:40, preferably 1:2to 1:20 and more preferably 1:3 to 1:10.

The processes and systems of the present invention may be used in thehome or in a service, such as a cleaning service, diaper service,uniform cleaning service, or commercial business, such as a laundromat,dry cleaner, linen service which is part of a hotel, restaurant,convention center, airport, cruise ship, port facility, or casino.

The methods of the present invention may be performed in an apparatusthat is a modified existing apparatus and is retrofitted in such amanner as to conduct the method of the present invention in addition torelated methods. Nonlimiting examples of suitable fabric articletreating apparatuses include commercial cleaning machines, domestic,in-home, washing machines, and clothes drying machines. Another exampleof an apparatus that can be retrofitted is disclosed in U.S.2002/0133886A1.

The methods of the present invention may also be performed in anapparatus that is specifically built for conducting the presentinvention and related methods.

Further, the methods of the present invention may be added to anotherapparatus as part of a dry cleaning solvent processing system. Thiswould include all the associated plumbing, such as connection to achemical and water supply, and sewerage for waste wash compositions.

The methods of the present invention may also be performed in anapparatus capable of “dual mode” functions. A “dual mode” apparatus isone capable of both washing and drying fabrics within the same vessel(i.e., drum). Dual mode apparatuses for aqueous laundry processes arecommercially available, particularly in Europe. Additionally, the methodof the present invention may also be performed in an apparatus capableof performing “bi-modal” cleaning functions. A “bi-modal” apparatus isone capable of performing both non-aqueous washing and aqueous washingin the same vessel, wherein the two washing modes can be performed insequential washing cycles or in a combination washing cycle.Additionally, the bi-modal machine is capable of fully drying theclothes without having to transfer them to a separate machine. That is,a machine can have the bi-modal function as well as the dual-modefunction.

An apparatus suitable for use in the present invention will typicallycontain some type of control systems, including electrical systems, suchas “smart control systems”, as well as more traditionalelectromechanical systems. The control systems would enable the user toselect the size of the fabric load to be cleaned, the type of soiling,the extent of the soiling, the time for the cleaning cycle.Alternatively, the control systems provide for pre-set cleaning and/orrefreshing cycles, or for controlling the length of the cycle, based onany number of ascertainable parameters the user programmed into theapparatus. For example, when the collection rate of dry cleaning solventreaches a steady rate, the apparatus could turn its self off after afixed period of time, or initiate another cycle for the dry cleaningsolvent.

In the case of electrical control systems, one option is to make thecontrol device a so-called “smart device”, which provides smartfunctions, such as self diagnostics; load type and cycle selection;Internet links, which allow the user to start the apparatus remotely,inform the user when the apparatus has cleaned a fabric article, orallow the supplier to remotely diagnose problems if the apparatusmalfunctioned. Furthermore, the apparatus of the present invention canalso be a part of a cleaning system, the so called “smart system”, inwhich the present apparatus has the capability to communicate withanother laundry apparatus that performs a complimentary operation (suchas a washing machine or a dryer) to complete the remainder of thecleaning process.

The Intensive Solvent Purification Treatment

The intensive solvent purification treatment removes laundry additivesand/or soils from the rinse eluent to produce the purified dry cleaningsolvent. It is understood that the purified dry cleaning solventsuitable for use as the rinse fluid in the rinse cycle of the presentinvention may still contain traces of laundry additives and/or soils invarying amounts. In view of the tendency for soils to generate odors,rancid smells, discoloration, and the like, all of which are readilydetectable by the consumers and generally interpreted as signals forunsatisfactory dry cleaning results by the consumers, the acceptableamount of soils in the purified solvent is generally lower than theacceptable amount of laundry additives. For example, the amount of soils(such as body soils or dyes) may be present at less than about 0.1% byweight of the purified solvent. On the other hand, the amount of laundryadditives (such as detersive surfactant) in the purified solvent may beless than about 5% by weight of the purified solvent. In a typicalembodiment, the soil may be present at amounts from about 0.00001% toabout 0.1%, or from about 0.0001% to about 0.05%, or from about 0.001%to about 0.01%, by weight of the purified solvent. On the other hand,the amount of a laundry additive in the purified solvent may be lessthan about 5%, or from about 0.0001% to about 5%, or from about 0.001%to about 2%, or from about 0.01% to about 1%, by weight of the purifiedsolvent.

The intensive solvent purification treatment of the of the presentinvention generally employs non-distillative separation methods,optionally, in combination with other separation methods, such asdistillation, membrane filtration, and other separation or purificationmethods described in U.S. Patent Publications 2002/0004952A1 and2005/0009724A 1.

Typically, the method comprises contacting the rinse eluent with one ormore adsorbent or absorbent materials. Suitable absorbent materialsinclude those water absorbing polymers or gel materials described inU.S. Pat. No. 6,855,173. Suitable adsorbent materials include, but arenot limited to, activated carbons, clays, polar agents, apolar agents,charged agents, zeolites, nanoparticles, and mixtures thereof. In oneembodiment, the adsorbent material is added to the mixture as solidparticulates/powders. In another embodiment, the adsorbent material iscontained in a cartridge filter or like container.

Suitable activated carbons may have one or more of the followingproperties: (i) an internal surface area at least about 1200 m²/gram,preferably from about 1200 to about 2000 m²/gram, and more preferablyfrom about 1300 to about 1800 m²/gram; and (ii) an average pore diameterless than about 50 Angstroms, preferably ranging from about 20 to about50 Angstroms and more preferably from about 30 about 40 Angstroms; andoptionally (iii) a cumulative surface area at least about 400 m²/gram,preferably ranging from about 400 to about 2000 m²/gram, preferably fromabout 500 to about 1800 m²/gram, and more preferably from about 600 toabout 1600 m²/gram. Further, the activated carbons suitable for useherein typically have an Adsorption Capacity from about 150 to about 600mg contaminants per gram of adsorbent, preferably from about 300 toabout 550 mg contaminants per gram of adsorbent, and more preferablyfrom about 400 to about 500 mg contaminants per gram of adsorbent.

The internal surface area and cumulative surface area can be determinedby the well known BET method that measures nitrogen adsorption at 77° K.The cumulative pore volume and average pore diameter can be determinedby the BJH method that measures nitrogen adsorption at 77° K. under BJHmesopore volume/size distribution. These methods are disclosed in moredetails by Brunauer et al., in J. Am. Chem. Soc., Vol. 60, 309 (1938);and Barrett et al. in J. Am. Chem. Soc., Vol. 73, 373 (1951). The BETand BJH measurements can be conducted with an Accelerated Surface Areaand Porosity (ASAP) instrument, Model 2405, available from MicromeriticsInstrument Corporation, Norcross, Ga.

Nonlimiting example of a suitable activated carbons include Nuchar® RGC,available from Mead Westvaco Corporation, Stamford, Conn.; Acticarbone®BGX, available from Atofina Chemicals, Inc. Philadelphia, Pa.; Norit®GF-45 and Norit® C, available from Norit America, Inc. Atlanta, Ga.

Nonlimiting examples of polar agent suitable for use herein as theadsorbent material include: silica, diatomaceous earth,aluminosilicates, polyamide resin, alumina, zeolites and mixturesthereof. In one embodiment, the polar agent is silica, more specificallysilica gel. Suitable polar agents include Silfam® silica gel, availablefrom Nippon Chemical Industries Co., Tokyo, Japan; and Davisil® 646silica gel, available from W. R. Grace, Columbia, Md.

Nonlimiting examples of apolar agents suitable for use herein as theadsorbent material include: polystyrene, polyethylene, and/or divinylbenzene. The apolar agent may be in the form of a fibrous structure,such as a woven or nonwoven web. Suitable apolar agents includeAmberlite® XAD-16 and XAD-4, available from Rohm & Haas, Philadelphia,Pa.

Nonlimiting examples of charged agents suitable for use herein as theadsorbent material include polymers having charged substitutents,wherein the polymer backbone may be: polystryrene, polyethylene,polydivinyl benzene, polyacrylic acid, polyacrylamide, polysaccharide,polyvinyl alcohol, copolymers of the above; and the substitutents may becharged moieties such as sulfonates, phosphates, carboxylates,quaternary ammonium salts and mixtures thereof, or protonable moietiessuch as those derived from alcohols; diols; salts of primary andsecondary amines and mixtures thereof Suitable charged agents areavailable from Rohm & Haas, Philadelphia, Pa., under the designationIRC-50.

When designing the filter, it is desirable to optimize the adsorbentactivity in order to efficiently remove the contaminants from the rinseeluent. It is also desirable to have as low a pressure differential aspossible across the filter because the larger the pressure drop the moreenergy is needed to maintain the same flow rate of fluid through thefilter. It is further desirable to have adequate flow rate such that afixed amount of rinse eluent is purified within unit time. The flow ratecan be adjusted by a combination of factors, such as pressure dropacross the filter, the size of the filter and associated conduits, theaverage particle size and distribution of the adsorbent material, andthe packing density or porosity of a compressed block of adsorbentmaterial.

In one embodiment where a filter containing adsorbent materials is used,it is desirable to optimize the residence time needed to purify thesolvent effectively. As used herein, “residence time” means the lengthof time during which the rinse eluent is in contact with the adsorbentsinside the filter. The desired residence time is influenced by the typesof contaminants, the levels of contaminants and the affinity between thecontaminants and the adsorbent materials. For example, when theadsorbent material is activated carbon, the residence time needed toremove dyes from the rinse eluent is shorter than the residence timeneeded to remove surfactants from the same rinse eluent. The residencetime can lengthened by using a filter having a low flow through rate.Alternatively, the residence time can be lengthened by recirculating therinse eluent through the filter repeatedly. In such embodiment, theresidence time is the total contact time between the rinse eluent andthe filter over multiple recirculations. For practical purposes, theresidence time to convert the wash eluent to a high purity rinse fluidis less than about 12 hours (i.e., overnight filtration) so that thehigh purity rinse fluid is ready to be reused the next day. In otherembodiments, the residence time can be less than about 8 hours, or lessthan about 4 hours.

In one embodiment, the filter comprises adsorbent material composed ofactivated carbons in the form of fine powders having average particlesizes in the range of about 0.1-250 microns, preferably 0.1-100 microns,more preferably about 0.1-50 microns. The average particle size can bemeasured by ISO 9001 EN-NS 45001 sieve analysis (using U.S. StandardTesting Sieves) or ASTM D4438-85.

In one embodiment, the filter is composed of activated carbon powdersand a binder, wherein the two components are compressed or fusedtogether to form a porous block. The porous block is permeable to fluidsand has interconnected pores forming a plurality of tortuous pathwaysfrom one surface or location to another surface or location of theblock. The activated carbon powders are described hereinabove. Thebinder is typically a polymer, and preferably a thermoplastic polymer.Nonlimiting examples of binder material include polyolefins such aspolyethylene, polypropylene and copolymers; vinyl or diene polymers suchas polyvinyl acetate, polybutadiene; polyacetals such aspolyacetaldehyde; polyacrylics such as polyacrylic acid, polymethacrylicacid, polyacrylamide, and copolymers thereof; fluorocarbon polymers suchas polytetrafluoroethylene, perfluorinated ethylene-propylene polymer;polystyrene and copolymers such as acrylonitrilebutadiene-styrene (ABS);polyamides; polyimides; polyesters; and the like. The block can be madeby extrusion, molding, compression, and other known methods.

In one embodiment, the porous block is composed of carbon powders havingan average particle size of about 30 microns and binders at the level ofabout 5-40%, or about 20-30% by weight of the block. It is desirable touse activated carbon powders having small particle size and uniformparticle size distribution. It is also desirable to select the activatedcarbons having high adsorption capacity for the target contaminants.

In one embodiment, the adsorbent materials are contained in a filter ora container, such as a housing, a pouch, a bag, a sachet or likecontainer The filter can have any shape or size. At the minimum, itshould hold sufficient adsorbent materials to render the dry cleaningsolvent substantially free of contaminants for an overnight (about 12hours) filtration operation.

In one embodiment, the filter may comprise adsorbent materials embeddedin or coated on or bound to a fibrous structure, such as a nonwoven orwoven fibrous web. The loading level of the adsorbent material in thenonwoven web ranges from about 10 to about 500 grams per square meter(gsm), preferably from about 25 to about 400 gsm and more preferablyfrom about 50 to about 300 gsm. The thickness of the nonwoven web isgenerally in the range of from about 0.01 to about 10 mm, preferablyfrom about 0.1 to about 5 mm. The non-woven web is desired to have abasis weight in the range of from about 5 to about 1000 gsm, preferablyfrom about 10 to about 300 gsm. The fibrous substrate may be formed intosheets, films, membranes or other configurations. The sheetconfiguration includes well-known variations, such as tubes, hollowfibers, spiral wound modules and flat sheets in plate and frame units.

In one embodiment, the filter comprises a fibrous substrate and a porousblock contained in a filter housing. FIG. 3 illustrates such anembodiment wherein the filter comprises a filter housing 50, whichcomprises a rigid apertured cylindrical external cage 51 and an internalcylindrical core element 58 having a central passageway 57 coaxiallydisposed. The apertures 52 in the rigid external cage 51 allow fluid toflow therethrough. The fibrous structure is in the form of alongitudinally pleated sheet 53 placed such that the individual pleatsare oriented radially relative to the filter cartridge's longitudinalaxis. The porous blocks of activated carbons and binders are placed inthe space between the external cage and the internal core element andare contiguous with the pleats. It is believed the combination ofpleated fibrous substrate and the porous block adsorbent reducesclogging of the porous block by insoluble contaminants. Clogging maylead to increased pressure differential across the filter and channelingthrough the filter such that the adsorbent materials within the filterare not fully and evenly utilized, all of which result in frequentreplacement of the filter.

In an alternative embodiment as shown in FIG. 4, the filter comprises arigid, fluid impermeable, cylindrical filter housing 210, a top flange220 and a bottom flange 230 having apertures 140 to allow fluid to flowthrough the filter. One or more distinctive zones 240, 250, 260 and 270are layered in between the flanges such that fluid flows through thezones in the perpendicular direction. The zones are optionally separatedby fluid permeable element 130. The fibrous structure in the form of aradially pleated sheet 170 is placed in each zone such that theindividual pleats are oriented radially relative to the filtercartridge's horizontal axis. The porous blocks of activated carbons andbinders are placed between the pleates.

In another embodiment, the filter may contain more than one adsorbentmaterials commingled and dispersed inside the filter housing. In anotherembodiment, the filter may comprise multiple compartments; eachcompartment contains a single adsorbent material or multiple adsorbentmaterials. If the filter has both a particulate and an adsorbent and/orabsorbent (e.g., activated carbon) material compartment, either for thefilter used in the wash cycle or in the rinse cycle, an optionalconfiguration for the filter design would allow replacing theparticulate filter portion without replacing the adsorbent/absorbentmaterial filter portion.

In a further embodiment, the filter may comprise particulates ofadsorbent materials that are dropped into the treating vessel or thesolvent reservoir directly and mixed with the rinse eluent by agitation,tumbling, or other known mixing techniques. The mixture of the adsorbentmaterial and the rinse eluent form a suspension or a slurry with aweight ratio of adsorbent material to rinse eluent about 0.001:1 to0.1:1. This approach makes a particular effective use of the adsorbentmaterials because it provides maximum contacts between the fluid beingpurified and the particulates. An optional sieve filter may be used toremove the particulate adsorbent materials from the purified solvent.

Lipophilic Fluid

“Lipophilic fluid” as used herein means any liquid or mixture of liquidthat is immiscible with water at up to 20% by weight of water. Ingeneral, a suitable lipophilic fluid can be fully liquid at ambienttemperature and pressure, can be an easily melted solid, e.g., one thatbecomes liquid at temperatures in the range from about 0° C. to about60° C., or can comprise a mixture of liquid and vapor phases at ambienttemperatures and pressures, e.g., at 25° C. and 1 atm. pressure.

The suitable lipophilic fluid may be non-flammable or, have relativelyhigh flash points and/or low VOC (volatile organic compounds)characteristics, these terms having conventional meanings as used in thedry cleaning industry, to equal to or exceed the characteristics ofknown conventional dry cleaning fluids, such as perc (perchloroethylenechloride). As used herein, the “dry cleaning solvents” useful in thepresent invention refers to the lipophilic fluids.

Non-limiting examples of suitable lipophilic fluid materials includesiloxanes, other silicones, hydrocarbons, glycol ethers, glycerinederivatives such as glycerine ethers, perfluorinated amines,perfluorinated and hydrofluoroether solvents, low-volatilitynonfluorinated organic solvents, diol solvents, otherenvironmentally-friendly solvents and mixtures thereof.

“Siloxane” as used herein means silicone fluids that are non-polar andinsoluble in water or lower alcohols. Linear siloxanes (see for exampleU.S. Pat. Nos. 5,443,747, and 5,977,040) and cyclic siloxanes are usefulherein including the cyclic siloxanes selected from the group consistingof octamethyl-cyclotetrasiloxane (tetramer),dodecamethyl-cyclohexasiloxane (hexamer), decamethyl-cyclopentasiloxane(pentamer, commonly referred to as “D5”), and mixtures thereof. Asuitable siloxane comprises more than about 50% cyclic siloxanepentamer, or more than about 75% cyclic siloxane pentamer, or at leastabout 90% of the cyclic siloxane pentamer. Also suitable for use hereinare siloxanes that are a mixture of cyclic siloxanes having at leastabout 90% (or at least about 95%) pentamer and less than about 10% (orless than about 5%) tetramer and/or hexamer.

The lipophilic fluid can include any fraction of dry-cleaning solvents,especially newer types including fluorinated solvents, or perfluorinatedamines. Some perfluorinated amines such as perfluorotributylamines,while unsuitable for use as lipophilic fluid, may be present as one ofmany possible adjuncts present in the lipophilic fluid-containingcomposition.

Other suitable lipophilic fluids include, but are not limited to, diolsolvent systems e.g., higher diols such as C₆ or C₈ or higher diols,organosilicone solvents including both cyclic and acyclic types, and thelike, and mixtures thereof.

Non-limiting examples of low volatility non-fluorinated organic solventsinclude for example OLEAN® and other polyol esters, or certainrelatively nonvolatile biodegradable mid-chain branched petroleumfractions.

Non-limiting examples of glycol ethers include propylene glycol methylether, propylene glycol n-propyl ether, propylene glycol t-butyl ether,propylene glycol n-butyl ether, dipropylene glycol methyl ether,dipropylene glycol n-propyl ether, dipropylene glycol t-butyl ether,dipropylene glycol n-butyl ether, tripropylene glycol methyl ether,tripropylene glycol n-propyl ether, tripropylene glycol t-butyl ether,tripropylene glycol n-butyl ether.

Non-limiting examples of suitable glycerine derivative solvents include2,3-bis(1,1-dimethylethoxy)-1-propanol; 2,3-dimethoxy- 1-propanol;3-methoxy-2-cyclopentoxy-1-propanol;3-methoxy-1-cyclopentoxy-2-propanol; carbonic acid(2-hydroxy-1-methoxymethyl)ethyl ester methyl ester; glycerol carbonateand mixtures thereof.

Non-limiting examples of other silicone solvents, in addition to thesiloxanes, are well known in the literature, see, for example, KirkOthmer's Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology, and are available from anumber of commercial sources, including GE Silicones, Toshiba Silicone,Bayer, and Dow Corning. For example, one suitable silicone solvent isSF-1528 available from GE Silicones.

In one embodiment, the lipophilic fluid comprises more than 50% byweight of the lipophilic fluid of cyclopentasiloxanes (e.g., D5) and/orlinear analogs having approximately similar volatility, and optionallycomplemented by other silicone solvents.

The amount of lipophilic fluid, when present in the treatingcompositions according to the present invention, is from greater thanabout 50% to about 99.99%, or from about 60% to about 95%, or from about70% to about 90% by weight of the treating composition.

Laundry Additives And Fabric Treatment Compositions

The fabric treatment composition for use in treating/cleaning fabricarticles may comprise a lipophilic fluid and at least one laundryadditives. Optionally, the fabric treatment composition may furthercomprise water and/or polar solvents.

Each laundry additive, when present in the composition, typicallycomprises from about 0.01% to about 80%, or from about 0.5% to about60%, or from about 1% to about 50% by weight of the composition. Thelaundry additives are not required to be present at the sameconcentration. For example, an enzyme can be present at a level of about1/10 to about 1/100 of the level of a detersive surfactant.

When the composition is diluted with the lipophilic fluid to form thewash liquor, each laundry additive, when present, typically comprisesfrom about 0.0001% to about 50%, or from about 0.01% to about 30%, orfrom about 1% to about 20% by weight of the wash liquor.

In some embodiments, polar solvents may optionally be incorporated intothe wash liquor as well. The polar solvent may be added as a componentof the fabric treatment composition or as a co-solvent of the lipophilicfluid in the wash liquor. The polar solvent can be water, and optionallyalso includes linear or branched C1-C6 alcohols, C1-C4 glycols andmixtures thereof.

When present, the polar solvent ranging from about 99% to about 1%, orfrom about 5% to about 40%, by weight of the composition; and cleaningadjuncts ranging from about 0.01% to about 50%, or from about 5% toabout 30%, by weight of the composition.

Laundry additives include, but are not limited to, soil releasepolymers, detersive surfactants, bleaches, enzymes, perfumes, softeningagents, finishing polymers, dyes, dye transfer inhibiting agents, dyefixatives, fiber rebuild agents, wrinkle reducing and/or removingagents, fiber repair agents, perfume release and/or delivery agents,shape retention agents, fabric and/or soil targeting agents,antibacterial agents, anti-discoloring agents, hydrophobic finishingagents, UV blockers, brighteners, pigments (e.g., Al₂O₃, TiO₂), pillprevention agents, skin care lotions (comprising humectants,moisturizers, viscosity modifiers, fragrances, etc.), insect repellents,fire retardants, and mixtures thereof. Of these, some are more usefulthan others for inclusion into the rinse cycle, such as soil releasepolymers, perfumes, softening agents, finishing polymers, dyes, dyefixatives, fiber rebuild agents, wrinkle reducing and/or removingagents, fiber repair agents, perfume release and/or delivery agents,shape retention agents, antibacterial agents, anti-discoloring agents,hydrophobic finishing agents, UV blockers, brighteners, pigments, pillprevention agents, skin care lotions, insect repellents, fireretardants, and mixtures thereof. Exemplary laundry additives aredisclosed in U.S. 2003/0087793A1 (P&G case 8632M); U.S. 20050000029 Al(P&G case 9542M); and U.S. 20050009723A1 (P&G case 9293M).

In one embodiment, the wash composition comprises one or more of thesurfactants: from about 0.01% to about 30% by weight of the compositionof a silicone surfactant, from about 0.01% to about 90% by weight of thecomposition of a nonionic surfactant, from about 0.01% to about 50% byweight of the composition of a Gemini surfactant, and from about 0.01%to about 50% by weight of the composition of an anionic surfactant.

All documents cited in the Detailed Description of the Invention are, inrelevant part, incorporated herein by reference; the citation of anydocument is not to be construed as an admission that it is prior artwith respect to the present invention. To the extent that any meaning ordefinition of a term in this written document conflicts with any meaningor definition of the term in a document incorporated by reference, themeaning or definition assigned to the term in this written documentshall govern.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have beenillustrated and described, it would be obvious to those skilled in theart that various other changes and modifications can be made withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is thereforeintended to cover in the appended claims all such changes andmodifications that are within the scope of this invention.

1. A dry cleaning process comprising a wash cycle and a rinse cycle,wherein the wash cycle comprises the steps of: a. contacting fabricarticles with a wash composition, whereby the wash composition isconverted into a wash eluent; b. removing the wash eluent from thefabric article, whereby the fabric articles become substantially free ofthe wash eluent; and c. treating the wash eluent, whereby the washeluent is converted into the wash composition for re-use in step (a);the rinse cycle comprises the steps of: d. contacting fabric articleswith a rinse fluid, whereby the rinse fluid is converted into a rinseeluent; e. removing the rinse eluent from the fabric articles such thatthe fabric articles are substantially free of the rinse eluent; f.purifying the rinse eluent, whereby the rinse eluent is converted to therinse fluid for re-use in step (d).
 2. The process of claim 1 furthercomprising the steps of: g. drying the fabric article whereby trace oflipophilic fluid on the fabric article is converted into lipophilicfluid vapor; h. condensing lipophilic fluid vapor; and i. adding thecondensed lipophilic fluid vapor to the wash composition of step (a). 3.The process of claim 1 wherein the treating step (c) comprises one ormore of the following: replenishing laundry additive, replenishinglipophilic fluid, passing through a particulate filter, and combinationsthereof.
 4. The process of claim 1 wherein the purifying step (f)comprises contacting the wash eluent with a rinse filter.
 5. The processof claim 4 wherein the rinse filter comprises an adsorbent material, anabsorbent material, or mixtures thereof.
 6. The process of claim 4wherein the filter comprises activated carbon.
 7. The process of claim 6wherein the activated carbon exhibiting one or more of the followingcharacteristics: i) an average particle size in the range from about 0.1to about 50 microns; ii) an adsorption capacity of at least 150 mg pergram of an adsorbent; iii) an internal surface area at least about 1200m²/gram; iv) an average pore diameter less than about 50 Angstroms; v) acumulative surface area at least about 400 m²/gram; and vi) combinationsthereof.
 8. The process of claim 6 wherein the filter further comprisesa binder, a fibrous substrate, or both.
 9. The process of claim 1further comprising the step of replacing the rinse filter when thepressure differential across the filter increased by about ten times orhigher.
 10. The process of claim 1 wherein the rinse fluid comprisesless than about 0.0001% or less than about 5% laundry additive, or both.11. The process of claim 1 wherein the lipophilic fluid comprises linearor cyclic silicones.
 12. The process of claim 1 wherein the lipophilicfluid comprises decamethyl cyclopentasiloxane (D5).
 13. The process ofclaim 1 wherein the wash cycle comprises an optional step of passing thewash eluent through a particulate filter.
 14. A dry cleaning apparatusexhibiting sustainable efficiency in removing soils from discrete loadsof soiled fabric articles, the apparatus comprising: a. a treatmentchamber for retaining the fabric; b. a first lipophilic fluid source forsupplying wash composition to the treatment chamber, the washcomposition is converted into wash eluent when contacted by the fabricarticles; c. a second lipophilic fluid source for supplying rinse fluidto the treatment chamber, the rinse fluid is converted into rinse eluentwhen contacted by the fabric articles; d. a rinse filter for removingresidues of laundry additives and/or soils from rinse eluent, wherebythe rinse eluent is converted into the rinse fluid; and e. means forseparating fabric articles from wash eluent and/or rinse eluent.
 15. Theapparatus of claim 14 wherein the wash composition and the rinse fluidcomprise linear or cyclic siloxanes.
 16. The apparatus of claim 14wherein the wash composition and the rinse fluid comprise decamethylcyclopentasiloxane.
 17. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the rinsefilter comprises activated carbon, and optionally a binder, a fibroussubstrate, or both. .
 18. The apparatus of claim 14 further comprisingan in-line rinse pre-filter for removing particulates from the rinsefluid during rinse cycle.
 19. The apparatus of claim 14 furthercomprising an in-line wash pre-filter for removing particulates from thewash composition.
 20. A dry cleaning process exhibiting sustainableefficiency in removing soils from discrete loads of soiled fabricarticles, the process comprises a wash cycle using a wash compositionand a rinse cycle using a rinse fluid, the wash composition and therinse fluid are treated and reused in the process repeatedly, whereinafter treating 10 loads of soiled fabric articles, soil concentration inthe wash composition is about 75% to about 90% of soil concentration inthe wash composition in a control process which has no rinse cycle. 21.A dry cleaning process exhibiting sustainable efficiency in removingsoils from discrete loads of soiled fabric articles, the processcomprises a wash cycle using a wash composition and a rinse cycle usinga rinse fluid, the wash composition and the rinse fluid are treated andreused in the process repeatedly, wherein after treating 10 loads ofsoiled fabric articles, soil residue on laundered fabric articles isabout 5% to about 15% of soil residue on laundered fabric articles in acontrol process which has no rinse cycle.